Amazing medicinal value of bitter gourd ('karela')

Bitter gourd is a very common green vegetable found in almost every part of India. It is cooked in every Indian household. It has amazing medicinal properties. The present article discusses the benefits of bitter gourd in details. Read on....

Bitter gourd or 'karela'! Every Indian household is well acquainted with this vegetable. This vegetable is cooked in every Indian home. It is comparatively cheap also. Although we have a vague idea that bitter gourd is beneficial for health, but very few of us know the benefits or the medicinal values of bitter gourd. In this article we are going to discuss the medicinal values of bitter gourd.

Bitter gourd helps in digestion

Bitter gourd is a very rich source of cellulose, which fulfills the requirement of fibre in human body. It also contains some compounds which have de-worming capability. So, bitter gourd improves digestion and prevents problems like dyspepsia and constipation.Bitter gourd improves immunity system: It is an extremely rich source of vitamin C. Vitamin C boosts immunity system of human body. Vitamin C also stimulates anti-inflammatory responses of intestines.

Bitter gourd is extremely beneficial for diabetes patients

Bitter gourd contains polypeptide P. It functions like insulin and lowers blood sugar levels of diabetes patients. Bitter gourd also contains vicine (an alkaloid glycoside) which has hypoglycemic (lowering blood sugar) effects. These two and various other alkaloid compounds present in bitter gourd make it extremely beneficial for diabetes patients. Bitter gourd always remains in the diet chart of the diabetes patients.

It helps in reducing weight

One hundred gram of bitter gourd contains only seventeen calories. Needless to state that it is an excellent dietary item/vegetable for those who want to reduce body weight. Not only that, bitter gourd stimulates the liver for secretion of bile acids which in turn metabolises fat. So bitter gourd helps in reducing body weight and also helps in metabolisation of fat controlling body weight.

Bitter gourd prevents vision disorders

Bitter gourd is a very rich source of beta-carotene and vitamin A. These are extremely beneficial for eyes. Moreover, vitamin C and antioxidants present in this vegetable can reduce the damage to eyes caused due to oxidative stress. Many ophthalmologists advise their patients to regularly take bitter gourd.

It slows down the aging process

Bitter gourd is very rich in fibre, vitamins, anti-oxidants, alkaloids and various minerals. These help to clear the toxins generated in human body. These components of bitter gourd also prevent the damages caused due to the presence of free radicals in human body. So, bitter gourd reduces the aging process and keeps a person hale and hearty.

Concluding comments

Bitter gourd is a very common vegetable available all over India. This is very cheap and is cooked in every part of the country. Recent studies have proved that bitter gourd has amazing medicinal values and prevents many diseases like diabetes. In addition, it helps in weight loss, prevents visionary disorders and slows down aging. So, bitter gourd should be regularly included in the menu of every Indian household.

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Comments

Yes I too agree with the author that there are immense medicinal value of bitter guard as we call in Tamil as Pagarkai and in my home we have this at least two times in a week. Instead of making curry out of bitter guard, my children prefer it as snacks. That means after dicing the bitter gourd to small pieces, mixing it with butter milk or curd and then make it to dry in the scorching sun. The result would make them small and crisp. Fry the same as fryums and add salt by sprinkling over it. The children would love to eat as the bitterness has gone. And the fries would taste better.

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